Final Fantasy 14's battle system planner got his start at Square Enix when he interviewed producer Yoshi-P as a journalist and "used the opportunity to ask him for a job"

Square Enix's Hikaru Tamaki smiles at crowd.

Final Fantasy 14's battle system planner, Hikaru Tamaki, has revealed the unconventional method he used to get his job at Square Enix.

Taking the stage during Final Fantasy 14 Fan Festival in Anaheim, California today, Tamaki introduces himself as a Square Enix developer of 13 years, having started at the company in September 2013, "four days after the launch of A Realm Reborn." Before that, Tamaki says he was "a writer and editor for a game magazine," which gave him a unique perspective on game development. "Before long, I had developed an interest in making games myself," says Tamaki.